Tamil Nadu Cooperative Bank Rs 50000 loan scheme for ration card holders, vendors and business owners

June 1, 2020 by Amresh Bhatt

Tamil Nadu government, through the Cooperative Bank has launched a ration card loan scheme for the small and micro business owners as well as roadside vendors among others. This ration card micro personal loan scheme bears very low interest rate, as the state department clarified. The scheme is aimed to provide instant relief to those coming from lower income group engaged in running small eatery outlets on pavements, selling stuff on roadside, and other small occupations. The basic requirement for getting this loan is a valid ration card.

The eligible and interested can apply online or offline through the Taml Nadu Cooperative Societies and Bank, also known locally as ‘Kooturavu Vangi’ to avail this ration card loan. The government is yet to setup a website for the online application form process for this scheme.

Tamil Nadu Cooperative Bank Ration Card Loan Scheme Explained

The state government has proposed that the small roadside vendors be issued micro loans of up to Rs. 50,000 through Cooperative Societies and Banks. “The Cooperative banks will offer soft loans to small business owners with family ration cards”, Cooperation Minister Sellur K Raju informed. The Minister was speaking at an event in Madurai where he was distributing essential goods packs to the residents. The ration card loan scheme will be available at a low-interest rate with repayment time up to 350 days, he further said.

The lockdown condition has affected the roadside vendors most as they sell local/ home made goods to earn livelihood. Many of them could not even manage the basic requirement of meals to their families during these times. To ease the situation, the cash relief of Rs. 1,000 was provided by the state government to ration card holders through 36,945 ration outlets, benefiting around 1.88 crore people.

Cooperative banks in the State have already been providing loans to women self-help groups at low interest rates and now the government has proposed them to offer loans to ration card holders too. The card holders can produce their ration card by vising the bank branch and loan amount would be credited to their accounts directly, the minister said. The loan scheme would ensure easy access to credit to the lowest strata of population in these difficult times.

Ration card applications

Application Process

To avail any kind of personal loan from a bank, the borrowers are required to complete many formalities like providing proof of identity, proof of residence, bank statement, income proof documents and others. Under this scheme, the Cooperative banks will provide loans only by submitting ration cards.

Minister Sellur K Raju said the personal loan scheme will help prevent the poor from approaching private money lenders who change a high amount of interest rate. This scheme will provide instant money with very meager rate of interest and will also provide the marginalized a hope to stand on their own.

Speaking on other initiatives taken by the state government to provide relief to citizens, Minister further said the women self-help groups have also been given relaxation of six months for starting repayment on their loans. Similarly, the banks have also been providing loan of Rs. 3000 against one gram of gold at an interest rate of 69 paisa only.